Ultimate Guide to Saving for Retirement
It can be quite daunting to think about saving for retirement, especially when you’re unsure about where to begin. Regardless of whether you’re reaching retirement age or you’re an early preparer for the future, you may be wondering the following:
- How much should I save?
- What is the best way to save?
- What are my pension options?
No matter your worry, we’re here to help! All of the above are answered in Brite’s ultimate guide to saving for retirement.
At Brite, we provide a comprehensive pension service that offers everything from advice to asset management. Get in touch with us to start your retirement saving journey.
What Is Retirement Saving, and Why Is It So Important?
Around the globe, saving for retirement remains topical. During the COVID-19 pandemic, global assets in retirement saving plants exceeded $56 trillion in 2020 – an 11% increase over the previous year. This statistic solidifies the global recognition of the significance of retirement savings – thus it’s imperative that you start saving for retirement as well, if you haven’t already.
Saving for retirement is incredibly important for long-term financial stability. Therefore, it’s crucial that you contribute to your retirement savings as early as possible so that you have a secure fund that will last you through your retirement years. In particular, retirement savings help to ensure that your standard of living once retired can be as comfortable, or even more so, versus when you were of working age.
How to Save for Retirement
If you’d like to find out more about our pension plans, we’ve created some handy guides designed to help you make the right decision.
We understand that every situation is different, so if you feel that you need any more advice on how to save for retirement, our expert team is here to help!
Look At Your Existing Savings & Pensions
The first step to take is to look at the existing savings you have. Most people have some savings, whether they be collated into a general savings account or kept in a pension fund.
Legally, in the UK all employers have to enrol their employees into a workplace pension if you’re eligible for automatic enrolment. There are some situations in which your employer does not have to enrol you or provide automatic contributions, so it’s worth checking if you are enrolled, and if you’re eligible.
The eligibility criteria can be found below:
- You must not already be enrolled in a workplace pension
- You must be over the age of 22 and below state pension age
- Your employment has to be based within the UK
- You must be earning over £10,000 per year
Work Out How Much You’ll Need to Retire
One of the most important things you can do is work out how much you’ll need to retire. This will also depend on when you plan on retiring, as the earlier you do, the more funds you will need.
There is no set retirement age in the UK at the moment, so you can continue to work as long as you are able to. Whilst you may be able to start drawing from a workplace pension before you reach the state pension age, this may not be beneficial.
By deferring your workplace pension, you may be able to add more money to it, due to interest rates and the way your pension is being invested. Deferring your state pension may also lead to increased payments when you choose to claim it.
A lot of workplace pensions have a retirement tracker built into them, however if yours doesn’t, similar tools are available online. These systems allow you to input your desired salary upon retirement, so you can get a rough idea of when you can expect to retire.
Increase Your Contributions if You Can
Whilst you may be on track to retire with the salary you’re aiming for, it’s a good idea to add more voluntary contributions to your savings if you can.
Of course, if you’re unable to increase your contributions for the time being, or you feel that you might need that money for something else in the meantime, there’s no need to rush into it. However, the option is always there, particularly if you’re paying into a workplace pension.
Investing in a private pension scheme in the UK will usually allow you to gain tax relief on the funds saved, so if you can afford to contribute more, this will be an added benefit for you. Another option is to take out a separate savings account and add extra funds there, giving you two pots to draw from when you retire.
Choose Your Investments Wisely
One of the things people often tend to do when saving for retirement is invest in different funds and portfolios. If invested correctly, you could end up with more money than you otherwise would have done if the money had been placed in a standard savings account.
When you choose to invest, you will usually be offered a selection of portfolios with different risk levels. The higher the risk, the more your funds are likely to rise, although you need to be aware that a higher risk investment is likely to be less stable than a lower-risk investment.
At Brite, we specialise in model portfolios. These investment portfolios allow you to have a greater degree of control over your funds, as your asset’s will be continuously managed by our highly skilled team of investment fund managers. You can find out a little more about how we invest here.
Putting your money into a high-risk investment portfolio might be a good idea when you’re younger – particularly as you have more time to save, in case your funds are affected by an economic downturn.
Don’t Put All Your Eggs Into One Basket
Whilst workplace pensions are generally considered to be a safe bet if invested in standard assets, however, you may want to consider opening up a separate private pension account with diversified investments – adding an extra degree of safety to your retirement future.
One thing to consider is your state pension – the age that you can draw from this is set to increase in the coming decades, so you don’t want to rely purely on this. It’s also a good idea to have a separate emergency fund, for all those little things in life that can crop up unexpectedly.
One option that many people in the UK choose to go for is the LISA (Lifetime Individual Savings Account). A LISA is an ISA backed by the British government – you can take it out either as a cash ISA or a Stocks and Shares ISA.
There are two different types of LISA currently available – a retirement LISA (allowing you to save for retirement) and a help-to-buy LISA (so you can save money to buy your first home). When you put money into a LISA, the government match your contributions by 25%, making them a fantastic investment overall.
What Happens When You Retire?
Once you start to approach retirement age, you’ll want to make a plan of action. The first thing to do is decide whether you want to start drawing from your savings straight away – many people decide to continue working, which can add more to your pension pot.
You can also defer your state pension, which could increase the payments you get when you decide to claim it.
If you have decided to start taking from your retirement funds, the process will differ depending on the type of funds you have and where they’re invested. Have a chat to your employer if you have a workplace pension you’d like to claim, or contact the fund provider when you’re ready to start drawing down your pension.
Saving for Retirement: Why You Should Choose Brite
Brite offers smart saving for retirement solutions that allows you to grow your wealth with complete transparency and control over how it is managed. Investing over the longer term reaps greater benefits for you once you reach retirement age, so if you’re an expat looking for financial independence, Brite has you covered.
Our dedicated team of pension experts have years of industry expertise and experience – so you can count on us to be with you every step of the way. Whether that’s to help you transfer your pension into an overseas pension scheme or simply keep it in a standard UK pension plan, Brite can give you the peace of mind regarding saving for retirement.
Brite offers smart saving for retirement solutions that allows you to grow your wealth with complete transparency and control over how it is managed. Investing over the longer term reaps greater benefits for you once you reach retirement age, so if you’re an expat looking for financial independence, Brite has you covered.
Our dedicated team of pension experts have years of industry expertise and experience – so you can count on us to be with you every step of the way. Whether that’s to help you transfer your pension into an overseas pension scheme or simply keep it in a standard UK pension plan, Brite can give you the peace of mind regarding saving for retirement.
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